


A Bad Idea

by BrenanaBread



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: F/M, Hot Chocolate, Marichat, Mistletoe, Rain, and rooooommmannncceee, balcony, mostly just fluff, my typical overuse of italics :), some heart-to-heart, you know the drill
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-18
Updated: 2018-12-18
Packaged: 2019-09-22 08:52:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,296
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17056691
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BrenanaBread/pseuds/BrenanaBread
Summary: A Marichat Mistletoe drabble was requested on my tumblr, hope you enjoy :)





	A Bad Idea

The soft  _ pitter patter _ of rain falling against the roof had long since turned into a thunderous downpour, loud enough to dull any other noises in Marinette’s empty home.

She usually hated it when her parents had to be away for the weekend, as it left her alone with too much time and not enough sound to occupy the space.    
  
Before becoming a superhero, she’d often talked to herself in these moments, narrating her life or imagining conversations with people she knew or playfully teasing herself when she tripped up the stairs. Since Tikki had become a permanent fixture in her life, however, she no longer felt the urge to fill the house with empty words or unfulfilled fantasies when she could instead enjoy the company of a real friend.   
  
But on certain nights when the wind was loud and the rain hard, they didn’t speak. The creaking sounds of a girl climbing up the stairs couldn’t be heard over such a roaring storm. Neither could the gentle hum of a sewing machine or the crumbling of a chocolate chip cookie into a tiny god’s mouth or the soft  _ thump _ of a stealthy cat landing on a balcony.   
  
Unfortunately for Marinette, this meant that the loud knocking on her skylight elicited a tiny scream as she jumped in her seat and nearly sewed her finger to the neckline of an unfinished dress.    
  
She tried to wiggle herself out from between her desk and chair as the wheels wouldn’t cooperate with her frantic movements.   
  
“You heard that too, right?” she asked her kwami in a loud whisper.   
  
Tikki affirmed and dove behind the pillow on Marinette’s chaise, tacit encouragement to check out the trap door.   
  
Marinette took a deep breath, allowing herself a moment to calm her nerves before climbing up the ladder to her bed and reaching for the door’s handle.   
  
Another knock caused Marinette to startle.    
  
“Excuse me?” a muffled voice called. “Is anyone home?”   
  
Marinette pushed open her skylight and was rewarded with bright green eyes staring back at her in desperation while messy clumps of blond hair provided a route for water to splash onto her cheeks.   
  
“Can I come in?”   
  
She wiped at her cheeks in a daze, but nodded and made room for him to climb into her room, careful to inch the skylight closed as he no longer blocked it from the storm.   
  
Chat Noir landed on her bed softly and immediately began to apologize. “I’m so sorry, I tried to cover the light with my body so that it wouldn’t rain directly into your house, but I can see that I’ve already gotten it wet...”   
  
Marinette didn’t respond, too distracted by the rain water soaking into her bedspread from where Chat Noir sat.   
  
He followed her gaze and yelped when he realized he was dripping onto the pink comforter.   
  
“I’m so sorry!” he jumped, attempting to get off her bed and find the floor in front of her ladder, but instead hitting his head on the ceiling.   
  
Marinette couldn’t help the laugh that burst from her mouth as he cursed under his breath with a hand rubbing the top of his head, still trying to get off of her bed.   
  
With his peripheral vision partially blocked from his raised arm, he didn’t realize how close he was to edge of her loft until it was too late.   
  
Marinette tried to reach out and grab him, but he tripped over his twisted feet, tumbling down the staircase and into her dress form. It wobbled before toppling over onto him, a hastily draped and pinned blouse coming slightly undone on his chest.   
  
Marinette ran down the ladder to check on him, holding onto the railing and jumping off of the last few steps, narrowly avoiding landing on Chat Noir in her haste.   
  
“Oh my god, Chat!” she yelled, pulling the dress form off of his body and dropping down to her knees beside him, hands patting from his head to his torso, checking for any obvious injuries. “Are you all right?”   
  
He blinked open his eyes, dazed, but didn’t respond.    
  
“And here I thought cats always landed on their feet.”    
  
She didn’t know why she said it. She didn’t remember consciously thinking the words before they were out of her mouth, hanging in the silence that stretched between them. But she had said them, and there was no taking them back.   
  
His gaze dropped from the ceiling to her face and a giggle bubbled up from his chest.   
  
His laughter encouraged her own, and she sagged with relief that he was okay.   
  
Chat pushed himself up onto his elbows, head falling back as his own laughter continued. They spurred each other on, each time one of their chuckles started to subside, the other’s would crest, starting the cycle over again. It peaked when Marinette let herself go enough that her torso was curled over Chat’s and a snort popped out of her body.   
  
She wasn’t embarrassed by the sound, instead laughing harder as she slapped a hand over her mouth.   
  
Marinette slipped her knees out from under her so she was flat on her bottom next to Chat Noir’s hips, body still shaking.   
  
Their amusement died down together, though occasionally one of them would release a tiny half-laugh in remembrance of what just transpired, but they finally settled into a comfortable silence.   
  
“I needed that.” Chat was the first to move, bringing his knees up to plant his feet firmly on the ground and attempt to stand. “And I’m feline,” he said, turning to offer her a hand and help her up.   
  
She took his outstretched hand without thought. “You’re fine?”   
  
“No, I’m  _ f _ el _ ine, _ ” he corrected.   
  
She stared at him with a incredulously raised eyebrow. “That was weak and you know it.”   
  
He hung his head in playful shame.   
  
She lightly kicked the toe of his boot with her flats. “You can’t force these things.”    
  
“I know,” he groaned.   
  
She hit into his hip with her own as she stepped past him to the dress form, securing the pins that had gotten loose. “Maybe you need some lessons,” she tossed over her shoulder.   
  
“From?” He brushed his hands over his shoulders and down the back of his legs, ridding himself of the dust clinging to his damp form.    
  
“Me, clearly.”   
  
“You?” he asked incredulously.   
  
“I’m obviously way better at this than you are.”   
  
“I beg to differ!”   
  
“Well, beggars can’t be choosers.”   
  
He planted himself next to her, hands on his hips in fake indignation. “That doesn’t--” a drop of water fell off of his elbow and landed on the top of her foot.   
  
“You’re still wet!” she cut him off and stepped backwards, startled at the outburst.   
  
“Uhh--”   
  
“You must be freezing!”   
  
“Well--”   
  
Marinette grabbed his hand and pulled him towards the trap door.   
  
“I’ll get you a towel and you can dry off in the bathroom.” Her tone left no room for argument.   
  
Chat stumbled behind her, almost tripping over his tail which had loosely wound itself around his feet as he let her lead him without complaint.   
  
She dragged him down the stairs, reminding him with a laugh to hold onto the railing so he didn’t make a habit out of falling down her stairs.   
  
“It’s to your left,” she instructed him while opening a small closet and rummaging around for a fluffy, green towel.   
  
She followed him into the bathroom and handed it to him, pulling out a hair dryer and comb as well.   
  
“Thank you,” he spoke softly and sincerely, taking the towel out of her hands and patting down his torso.   
  
“You may want to use this too,” she thrusted the dryer and brush into his hands. “Can’t have Paris’s favorite superhero getting sick on us, can we?”   
  
“I didn’t realize you were housing Ladybug under this roof too.”    
  
Her eyes widened and for a moment she was so terrified he  _ knew, _ but when he punctuated his sentence with a wink, her shoulders sagged in relief.   
  
She laughed breathily, still not comfortable lying to her partner. “Nope,” she tugged on one of her ponytails “I guess we’re a one superhero kind of household.”   
  
His smile was disarming.“Ladybug’s loss, then.”   
  
“Do you want some tea or hot chocolate to warm you up? Maybe something to eat?” She stepped backwards, straightening her spine and eagerly changing the subject.   
  
“No, no, I’m fine, thank you.”   


“Well, I know you’re  _ fine _ , but that wasn’t the question,” she elbowed him in the ribs, no fear or discomfort at the casual touching and lighthearted flirting. “Tea or hot chocolate?” she pressed. “And I won’t take no for an answer.”   
  
His smile was small, but it reached his eyes, and the innocence Marinette found there made her heart do an unexpected stutter-step.    
  
“A hot chocolate would be amazing, thank you, Marinette.”   
  
She smiled and mumbled a “no problem” before darting into the kitchen to start making the beverage.   
  
A low whirr indicated Chat decided to use the hair dryer, and Marinette laughed to herself at the mental image of his blond locks becoming even more wild and fluffy.    
  
She rested her hip against the countertop waiting for the saucepan to heat up, trying to remember if she’d ever asked why he was at her house in the first place. She hadn’t forgotten Chat Noir had patrol that evening, but he was out much later than their usually agreed upon time. And he’d seemed so scatterbrained when he’d first fallen onto her bed, completely unlike the partner she’d come to know over the years.    
  
When he’d dried off enough to no longer be damp, he made his way into the kitchen.   
  
“Where should I put this?” he asked her, holding the towel up to catch her eye, startling her out of her reverie.   
  
“Oh! Um, there’s a pull-out hamper in the bathroom, underneath the cabinets you first walked past to get in. You can toss it in there.”   
  
He smiled his thanks and turned to leave, but Marinette impulsively reached out and lightly grasped his wrist.   
  
“Wait,” she said softly and he stopped in his tracks, looking at her inquisitively. “If you don’t mind me asking,” she stalled, feet turning in on themselves and fidgeting slightly. “Why are you here?”   
  
He was silent and she rushed to continue.   
  
“Not that it’s a problem you’re here! I’m actually relieved to have the company, but it just seems odd, you being out in the middle of a thunderstorm, and why would you choose  _ here _ of all places--”   
  
His smile cut her off.   
  
“Do you mind if I put this in the hamper first?”   
  
She sighed, grateful for the subtle interruption to her rambles. “Not at all, I’ll meet you in the living room.”   
  
She finished making the hot chocolate, pouring it into two mugs and heating up some pastries that hadn’t been sold that morning.   
  
Balancing the plate on her forearms with a mug in each hand, she concentrated heavily on each step she took, careful not to let anything fall.   
  
Chat was curled up on the floor in front of her couch with his feet tucked under his butt and his arm resting on the seat of the couch.   
  
Once she put the treats down on the coffee table in the middle of the living room, she noticed his shoulders were shaking in a silent laugh.   
  
“Hey,” she kicked his knee lightly with her foot. “What’s so funny?”   
  
“I’m sorry,” he said when he finally found his voice. “You were just so cute, princess. Concentrating so hard with your tongue poking out the side of your mouth. I couldn’t help it. You’re adorable.”   
  
Marinette harrumphed, plopping down onto the couch and kicking off her shoes to stretch out so she took up the entire space, pushing his arm off with a nudge from her knee. “Just for that, I’m not allowing cats on the furniture.”   
  
He pouted. “But all pets belong on the  _ fur _ niture.”   
  
She rolled her eyes. “Too bad for you, alley cat.”   
  
He rested his head against her leg and raised his eyebrows, letting his eyes grow wide and innocent.   
  
“I will….resist….the kitten eyes…..nooooo!” she cried when his lip jutted out even farther and his eyes became impossibly wider. “Fine,” she conceded pulling her knees up to her chest. “You can sit on the couch, you  _ monster _ .”   
  
He picked up his mug from the table and pointed at the treats questioningly, grabbing one happily when she nodded her head.   
  
“Really, thank you so much, Marinette.” He sat down on the opposite side of the couch, feet planted on the floor with a pastry halfway to his mouth and a warm beverage clutched to his chest.   
  
“It’s not a problem,” she said a bit distractedly when some whipped cream kissed the tip of his nose and the top of his lip.   
  
A cozy silence stretched between them as they sipped their hot chocolates languidly and sank into the cushions more fully.   
  
“I can’t tell you how much this means to me,” Chat continued, just loud enough to be heard over the dwindling rain.   
  
“Try me.”   
  
He took enough time answering that Marinette feared she’d made him uncomfortable.   
  
“Do you ever feel...just lost? Sometimes?” he asked, eyes darting to look at her briefly before staring straight ahead once again.    
  
She looked at his profile critically.   
  
He picked at a seam on his suit, not meeting her gaze. “Like you may never be found?”   
  
She considered the question for a long time, letting it float around in her brain before answering. “I have.”   
  
His only response was a slight nod before he brought the hot chocolate back to his lips.   
  
“Is that...how you feel? Chat Noir?”   
  
“It was.”   
  
She shifted in her spot, pushing herself along the couch until she was close enough to lay a gentle hand on his shoulder.    
  
“Are you okay?”   
  
His returning smile was forced and she knew it.   
  
She squeezed his shoulder in acknowledgement. “It’s okay not to be okay, Chat.”   
  
He dropped the smile and took a deep breath, letting it out slowly and turning his body to face her fully.   
  
“It’s this time of year, I guess.” He couldn’t hold her gaze for long, and she found herself dipping her head to chase his falling eyes, bring him back to her. “It just...brings up a lot of stuff for me.”   
  
“Is that why you were out so late? In a thunderstorm?”   
  
When he laughed, it almost sounded bitter. “I swear it wasn’t raining when I first went out. I left for patrol, and stayed out to clear my head. It felt so fuzzy.” He shook his head, clearing his thoughts. “I must have lost track of time but I didn’t even feel it start to rain.” He brought his almost empty mug up to face and took a deep breath, letting the chocolate air fill him. “I didn’t notice it until it was pouring so hard I could barely see in front of my face. Yours was the first house I recognized and I saw the light on and hoped you’d let me hide out for a while.”   
  
She dropped her hand from his shoulder and placed it on her lap holding his eyes when he looked at her. “You always have a place here.”   
  
“Thank you,” he whispered and she didn’t realize how close their faces had gotten. She could almost feel his whisper against her skin, able to hear him clearly over the rain. And it scared her.   
  
They both sat still, frozen in time, and she realized he was letting her make the next move, allowing her to decide her comfort level.   
  
But she didn’t know what she was comfortable with, and while part of her ached to fall into him, let chocolatey breaths mingle between them and allow herself to  _ feel _ , another part wrapped around her waist and held her back tightly, desperately trying to convince her not to make a rash decision she’d inevitably regret. This was her  _ partne _ r. Not some random guy she didn’t care about.   
  
The moment stretched between them, and when Chat fully saw the indecision in her eyes, he pulled back and cleared his throat awkwardly, trying to ease the tension.   
  
“Are you done?” he pointed to her mug. “‘Cause I was going to wash mine and if you’re done with yours too, I figured I’d save you the trip.”   
  
She smiled gratefully, but also felt a twinge of restlessness when she handed over her mug.   
  
She didn’t look at him as walked to the kitchen and her thoughts overtook her when she heard the sink squeak on.   
  
Did she want to kiss Chat?    
  
_ Yes.  
_   
So why did she hesitate?   
  
Her eyes closed tightly until colors swirled through her mind and she folded in on herself.   
  
She didn’t want to hurt him. She wasn’t sure of  _ her _ feelings and she wasn’t sure of  _ his _ feelings, but she  _ was _ sure of the Worst Possible Outcomes.   
  
Their partnership mattered much more than any random crush, and maybe if she was just a random civilian this would all be okay. It could become something amazing, fizzle out in unfulfilled expectations, or blow up in her face and it would be okay. But she wasn’t an ordinary girl off the street, she was Ladybug, a superhero, his  _ partner _ , and those things mattered.   
  
But how long had this been building? How long had she had feelings bubbling up in her chest, going far past those of a close-knit friendship and into something wildly different? How long had she repressed those emotions, casting them off as a fluke of the way the sun caught his eyes or an exaggeration of the fluttering in her stomach when his smile brightened at the touch of their fists?   
  
He clearly wanted this. She clearly wanted it too.   
  
And it was definitely a bad idea.   
  
But Marinette hadn’t had any bad ideas in a while, and maybe it was time she changed up her routine.   
  
She heard the water turn off and was off the couch before her mind had fully been made up.   
  
She didn’t know what she was going to do, letting her desire to be near him drive her forward without second thought, calling out his name and almost crashing into him in the tiny doorway between the living room and kitchen.   
  
“Oh!” Chat made a noise, automatically stepping back to get out of her personal space, but she took his hand gently in hers, a silent urge for him to hold his ground.   
  
He looked at her skeptically, but stayed firmly in his spot, the question obvious in his eyes.   
  
Marinette held his gaze for a moment before looking up, encouraging him to follow her movements.   
  
Above them in the door frame hung a ball of vibrant green leaves.   
  
Mistletoe.   
  
Chat looked down at her in surprise, unsure of how to react, but was met with soft lips pressed against the tip of his nose.   
  
His cheeks pinked and he held his breath until she lowered herself from her tippy toes, distancing their faces once again.   
  
“Sorry,” she said, clearly not sorry at all. “It’s tradition.”   
  
A strangled noise from the back of his throat broke his silence and she giggled.   
  
“Cat got your tongue?”   
  
He needed a moment to collect his thoughts, hand never leaving hers, thumb tracing shaky patterns into her skin.   
  
“Is that all I get?” he asked when he finally found his voice, trying to sound suave, but failing to hide the wonder in his tone.   
  
She reached up as he bent down, letting careless laughter bounce between their mouths as their lips finally met in a true mistletoe kiss.   


**Author's Note:**

> Come talk to me on tumblr!
> 
> [jattendschaton.tumblr.com](https://jattendschaton.tumblr.com/)


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